Experience our Dancing Stars
Sat, Jan 25, 7pm, 2020
Didn’t get a chance to experience our Methow Dancing with Your Stars on Saturday night? Well luckily videographer Cristina Woodworth filmed each performance. Now you can cheer and vote from your home screen. (Please note that Methow Arts does not own the rights to the music in these videos.)
Announcing our stars: Reigning champ Tori Karpenko competed against Molly Patterson (Glover Street Market,) Jason Paulsen (Methow Conservancy), Dea Luvon, Missi Smith (Merc Playhouse and Jacob Young (Old Schoolhouse Brewery.) Judges dazzled! Thanks to Danbert Nobacon, Dana Stromberger and Jamie Petitto!
MISSI SMITH – OUR WINNER!
Missi Smith has been involved in performing arts the majority of her life and is currently the Executive Director at The Merc Playhouse. This marks Missi’s first experience in ballroom dancing, but she has been twisting, shimmying, and spinning onstage (in heels) since a very young age.
JACOB YOUNG
Raised in a conservative environment where dancing was off-limits, I’ll never forget falling asleep secretly listening to hip hop on a $5 pair of yard sale headphones and falling in love with all things music. After college, I landed a job guiding luxury cycling vacations around the world and started a successful yoga retreat business. The Methow Valley has been a special place for me since the late 90s, when I used to come out to rock climb, mountain bike & recreate in the area, and I am excited to live here and be a part of this vibrant community. (Jacob is the co-owner of Old School House Brewery and OSB Taproom in Winthrop and Twisp, WA.)
JASON PAULSEN
Seeking to overcome the crippling dance anxieties that have plagued him since High School, Jason once again finds himself unable to say no to a good cause. An ardent believer that “who you know” is more important than “what you know”, Jason enters this competition banking on the promise of a patient dance partner and solid turn-out from his good-humored (and vocal) Methow Conservancy fan base. (Jason is the executive director of the Methow Conservancy in Winthrop, WA.)
TORI KARPENKO
Professional dance training? Zilch. But who cares? Just dance for the joy of it. Originally from the exotic deep interior also known as Nebraska, Tori moved to the Methow in 2001. He’s worked for a number of non-profits and built a bunch of things over the years, most recently as Director of Campus Operations at TwispWorks. When not with his son or wandering in the mountains, he paints and creates sculptures. And he’s left-handed.
DEA LUVON
Dea dreams of living in a world where swinging bars and rings hang from all ceilings, where yoga balls roll on all floors, where we nurture each other with daily massages, and where the mugs of warm, cozy drinks never ever run empty. (In the meantime, she loves dancing wherever she can, homeschooling her kids and romping in the hills with her sweetie and their dogs.)
MOLLY PATTERSON
With three teenage boys, Molly doesn’t get a lot of free time. But in spare stolen moments she likes to ride her horse into the backcountry, cook fabulous meals for friends, raft southwestern rivers with her family, and watch her kids swim and play basketball and baseball. Molly has no formal dance experience, but is always game for a good time. (Molly owns Glover Street Market in Twisp and co-owns Patterson Design Build with her husband.)
DATE: Sat, Jan 25, 7pm. CONTACT: Methow Arts (.org), 509.997.4004, info@methowartsalliance.org